The White Bench: My Book of Grace.

The White Bench: My Book of Grace.: Hello dear friends and readers, hope 2013 started off nicely for you. I have my "Book of Grace" published in the hot- off- th...

German Stars

Very special and traditional

Here are a few sites with great examples and video        

 http://linaloo.typepad.com/linaloo/2009/12/frucool-recycled-christmas-wreath.html

http://gratefulprayerthankfulheart.blogspot.com/2009/11/1-year-blogging-anniversary-tutorial.html

Reindeer Christmas Ornaments

 "Materials Needed:

Tree branches with bark on them;
One piece that is 1 inch diameter and 2 and 1/4 inches long for each reindeer.
One piece that is 5/8 inch diameter and 1 and 1/4 inches long for each reindeer.
At least ten inches of 1/4 inch diameter doweling per reindeer.
16 Gauge Copper Wire
Needle Nose Pliers
Brown leather scraps or brown felt scraps.
Red and Black Felt Scraps
Dark Red Felt
10 mm Jingle Bells
Thick Gold Thread
Needle
Scissors
Saw or wood pruners
Drill
17/64 Drill bit
1/16 Drill bit
Handheld Clamp
Pocket knife
Tacky Glue
Hot Glue Gun for glueing jingle bells."

Paper Christmas tree

Paper Forest

Making samples has left me with a bunch of scraps, seems I just can't throw anything away! So, I thought I'd get ready for Christmas with some little tree ornaments. All you need are three circles of printed CS, preferably double-sided. I made my circles 4", 3.5" and  3".

Now, for the next part, you can be precise by scoring, but I just folded mine up to get the crease. First, I folded them in half. Then, I opened them up and folded them in half the other way. I marked the crease lines with a pen so you can see it better.

Then, I matched up the folds diagonally and folded them in half. Do this in both diagonal directions. You should end up with 8 sections.

Next, you need to fold each "piece of the pie" in the middle, but this time you do a valley fold (dotted lines).

Then, I snipped each of these sections to a make short points between each section. Repeat these steps for all three circles.

Nap Time Crafters: Root Deer

Nap Time Crafters: Root Deer

Haunted Village

I'm in LOVE with
Sweet Little Smoothie: Haunted Village

Follow their link for the tutorial

Cold Season Rice Filled Cooling/Heating Pad

A super great tip from (Tipnut)

I can see lots of creative touches that one can add.

Give it your own Tender Loving Care touch!

How To Make A Microwave Heating Bag

Instead of using electric heat pads & blankets or hot water bottles for your aches and pains, these microwaveable bags are just the ticket! They’re known by a few different terms such as: bed buddies, stress busters, magic bags, corn cozies, rice bags–but they’re basically all the same thing.

These bags serve a dual purpose as you can also keep them in the freezer to use has a cooling pad or freezer pack when needed.

Microwave Heating Pad Directions

• No pattern is necessary, simply cut two pieces of cloth in the size/shape you wish your bag to be. Make sure to leave a seam allowance for yourself (about 1/2″).

Some prefer regular square shape bags, others prefer tubes or more rectangular shapes. Experiment, whip up a few different sizes and shapes to try. These are really easy to make as well as cheap!

Filler Options

• Uncooked rice
• Wheat
• Feed corn
• Buckwheat hulls
• Barley
• Oatmeal
• Beans
• Flax seed
• Cherry pits

You can also add the following to the above for a soothing fragrant heating pad: Spices, herbs, essential oils.

• Ideas: lavender, rose petals, ground cloves, nutmeg, ginger, rosemary, cinnamon, peppermint oil, crushed mint
• If using: Mix herbs, spices and essential oil with choice heating pad filler (such as rice) and let sit in a sealed container for a few days (occasionally stirring). This will help set and distribute the fragrance a bit.

Fabric Options

• Cotton: (plain, prints, flannels, denims)
• Alternate ideas: old socks (sew or knot end closed), washcloths, old towels

You can also choose to make cozy, removable & washable outer pouches. This is especially nice to do when giving as gifts.

• Fabric Ideas: use old towels, fleece, velour knits, pretty fabric prints and flannels (don’t microwave anything other than cotton fabrics). The softer & fluffier & better!

Instructions for Making the Heating Pad

• Cut and sew the fabric for the heating pads the size and shape you want (usually a large washcloth size works well).
• Leave an inch or two open on one side so that you can fill bag with your choice of filler. Fill the bag about 1/2 to 3/4 full, more or less as you prefer. Don’t fill too full though, you want the bag to mold itself around your body when you apply it.
• Once bag is filled, sew opening closed either by hand or machine (making sure filler is contained at the opposite side of bag).

If wanting a removable cover, just sew a “pillowcase” idea with your soft, plushy fabric by making it a little larger than your heating pad and leaving an open end (make sure to finish off ends by sewing a hem). Or you can add a strip of velcro to close it. Make sure to never microwave this cover unless it’s content is full cotton. Remove cover to wash as needed.

Filler Suggestion For Headache Soothers

Rice (or other grain listed above) and a mix of:

• Dried lavender
• Marjoram
• Betony
• Rose petals
• Cloves
• Rosemary

Directions For Use

Place in microwave and heat for 1 to 3 minutes, depending on size of bag. Do not leave unattended “just in case” the filler smokes or starts on fire. As a precaution, you can set a cup of water inside the microwave while heating the bag to add moisture or spritzing bag lightly with water before heating. If you add spices and herbs, this is a good idea to do.